Senior Continuous Improvement Manager

Piston Group & Piston Automotive LLC; City of Edinburgh; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the automotive sector seeks a Quality Manager to oversee the Quality System and drive continuous improvement initiatives. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in Lean and Six Sigma, a strong background in operations, and the ability to lead change across multiple sites. This role offers competitive wages and a comprehensive benefits package, including medical plans, paid holidays, and tuition reimbursement.

Benefits

Competitive wages

Paid holidays and vacation

Medical and Rx plans

Dental and vision coverage

401(k) with company match

Tuition reimbursement

Vehicle and product discounts

Qualifications

• 10+ years in operations, manufacturing engineering, or continuous improvement.
• Expertise in Lean and Six Sigma methodologies.
• Proven track record of leading large-scale Lean projects.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop the Quality System for compliance with customer and regulatory requirements.
• Drive company-wide Continuous Improvement Program using Lean tools.
• Coach teams in Lean Six Sigma methodologies.

Skills

Lean

Six Sigma

Change Management

Leadership

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree

MBA (preferred)

Tools

PowerPoint

Excel

MS Project

Minitab

Visio

Job description

Overview

Lead, develop, and deploy all aspects of the Quality System to ensure compliance with customer and regulatory requirements, internal Corporate Quality objectives, and provide a strategic vision for the company's quality function. Additionally, this role will drive a company-wide Continuous Improvement Program, known as the Piston Operating Philosophy (POP), aligned with corporate strategic objectives.

Piston Automotive was founded to make things better. We focus on building better teams dedicated to achieving excellence through experience, expertise, and passion. Our assemblies set standards because our people raise the bar.

Why Piston Automotive?

Competitive wages, paid holidays and vacation, medical and Rx plans, dental and vision, flexible spending and health savings accounts, Employee Assistance Program, life and disability coverage, 401(k) with company match, tuition reimbursement, vehicle and product discounts.

Responsibilities

1. Provide leadership and strategic direction to the continuous improvement process through development, deployment, and measurement of POP, ensuring alignment with strategic vision using Core Lean and CI tools such as:

• Hoshin Kanri (Strategy/Policy Deployment)
• KPIs
• Site-level Lean Audit
• Lean training content development and delivery
• Visual management and daily improvement practices
• Standard Lean tools (Standard Work, 5S, problem solving)

Lead project teams to resolve challenges across multiple sites, facilitating cooperation among multi-functional teams.

Coach and facilitate complex Continuous Improvement teams using Lean Six Sigma methodologies and tools.

Oversee troubleshooting and analysis to identify, evaluate, and implement solutions, including performance analysis and opportunity identification.

Partner and share knowledge across the business unit, segment, and company.

Collaborate with corporate teams to deploy initiatives.

Promote a culture of motivation and team-based operational excellence.

Teach, coach, and lead Kaizen activities and continuous improvement thinking.

Ensure training, mentoring, and coaching practices are in place to equip employees with industry tools for improvement.

Analyze workflows to improve safety, quality, and productivity.

Lead high-value Lean Six Sigma projects.

Work with peers and executives to enhance product quality and cost competitiveness.

Coordinate objectives with production procedures to maximize quality and minimize costs.

Align internal continuous improvement processes and metrics for maximum business impact.

Conduct annual corporate assessments at all facilities to track progress and prioritize initiatives.

Lead organizational change to foster a culture of continuous improvement at all levels.

Develop a collaborative environment fostering operational improvements across plant and functional areas.

Engage with professional communities and leverage external experiences for internal benefit.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and at least 10 years of experience in operations, manufacturing engineering, or continuous improvement; MBA preferred.
• Expertise in Lean and Six Sigma, with the ability to lead change and create value through influence and collaboration.
• Hands-on experience implementing Lean in manufacturing and transactional areas.
• Proven track record leading large-scale Lean projects.
• Experience applying Lean and Six Sigma tools and managing multiple projects.
• Strong change management, leadership, and communication skills.
• Knowledge in manufacturing, engineering, and supply chain activities.
• Proficient in PowerPoint, Excel, MS Project, Minitab, Visio.
• Excellent facilitation and interaction skills with internal and external stakeholders.
• Ability to influence projects and processes.
• Strategic planning and thinking skills.
• Willingness to travel up to 50%.